India is the world’s largest democracy in the world.
About 1.18 billion people live in India in 2010.
It has almost tripled in population since its independence from the United Kingdom in 1947.
India is the seventh largest country in the world in land area, it’s about one-third the size of the United States, but it is the second largest country in number of people.
One out of every six people in the world today lives in India.
Only China has more people, but India is growing so fast that it may surpass China in population by 2035.
India is an incredibly varied country.
Its people represent hundreds of nationalities and ethnic groups, and many different languages are spoken there.
India is still one of the poorest countries in Asia, and millions of people live a meager existence in slums in its huge cities.
Two of the world’s largest cities are in India: Bombay (Mumbai), with 18 million people, and Calcutta (Kolkata), with 13 million.
India’s landscapes range from the Himalayas in the north to desert areas in the west. Elsewhere there are hills, plains, rain forests, and tropical areas.
